


wouldn't know where to start

by acrobats



Series: jtbdayweek2019 [1]
Category: Batman (Comics), Batman - All Media Types, Red Hood and the Outlaws (Comics)
Genre: Bruce Wayne is a Good Dad, Fluff, Gen, jtbdayweek, jtbdayweek2019
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-09
Updated: 2019-08-09
Packaged: 2020-08-13 20:43:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 838
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20180443
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/acrobats/pseuds/acrobats
Summary: Jason nearly forgot his own birthday; why would Bruce and Alfred remember?





	wouldn't know where to start

Jason would have forgotten all about his birthday if he hadn’t happened to glance the date on an article detailing an art gallery robbery the day before. The 16th fell on a Saturday, and so he’d been allowed to stay in the Cave with Bruce for as long as he wanted; and as a result, it was past eleven when he got out of bed.

If he had nearly forgotten what day it was, he certainly didn’t expect Alfred or Bruce to remember. After all, he’d never even told them. Why would he? For a long while, he hadn’t considered his living situation permanent, and after he did…well, it wasn’t the kind of thing that came up in conversation just like that.

He’d never had much reason to look forward to his birthday, anyway. In the better times, his mom had managed to sneak him a little present – a chocolate bar or a small book bought at a sale, but it always had to be in secret, because Willis would be furious if he knew she was spending his money on that kind of thing. In the later years, when Willis was around less and less, his mom wasn’t well enough to do more than smile, ruffle his hair and wish him a happy birthday.

Last year he’d spent it alone on the street and didn’t even realize it until the 16th had passed. These kinds of things tended to slip your mind when you hadn’t eaten in a couple of days and had to look for a new place to sleep, because the empty garage you’d been crashing at was being torn down. He’d met Bruce not two months later, and everything had changed. He had a home now, and Robin, and access to more books than he could read in a lifetime – it really would be ridiculous to expect Bruce to do something for his birthday on top of it all.

Bruce didn’t know it was today, neither did Alfred, and Jason would keep it that way; they’d done more than enough for him already. There was a part of him that whispered that this was already too much of a good thing, and if he kept pressing his luck, the other shoe would drop eventually.

No, he wouldn’t say anything.

With that resolution in mind, Jason headed down to breakfast, and was a little caught off guard to find both Alfred and Bruce waiting in the kitchen, the wooden table stacked with plates; eggs and bacon and sausages, and toast and jams, and pancakes. There was enough food that it looked like a small hotel buffet.

"Uh,” said Jason. “Are we…expecting anyone?”

“Just yourself, master Jason,” Alfred said. “Do sit down; and happy birthday, my boy.”

Oh. _Oh_. This was for him. For him? Jason pulled back a chair and sat mechanically, trying to process that and coming up short. His stomach grumbled, and any other day he would have jumped in, but now he sat there staring, like he’d forgotten how to eat.

“Happy birthday, Jay,” Bruce told him, ruffling his hair, and that startled him out of his stupor. He didn’t jump or react in any way except turning to look at Bruce with wide eyes instead, but Bruce must have read something in his expression. He sighed. “I didn’t want to overwhelm you, but I also…I didn’t want to trivialize it. We can do whatever you want today, and if that’s nothing, then that’s fine too, but I don’t want you to think that your birthday isn’t important to me.”

"How did you even know?” Jason asked.

“Oh.” Bruce looked startled. “I’m your guardian; I’ve got your legal documents.”

“So what?” Jason insisted, baffled. “You saw my birth certificate once when you took me in and you just remembered?”

“Of course I did.”

What could he possibly say to that?

“You didn’t have to,” Jason mumbled, though warmth bloomed in his chest.

“It was important to me,” Bruce repeated. “You are important to me.”

"I – thank you,” Jason managed, lamely. And then, horrified that he hadn’t until now, “And thank you too, Alfred, you’re amazing.”

Alfred’s eyes glistened. “You’re quite welcome, my boy.”

“Have breakfast with us,” Jason pleaded. And before Alfred could make a protest, he added, “And no, I don’t care if you had a bite to eat when you woke up. Come on, don’t make me use the ‘it’s my birthday’ card, I am still trying to process all of this.”

"I yield,” Alfred said, tone dry, but with the shadow of a smile, and pulled out a chair. “Now then; I must insist on presents and cake only after dinner, but other than that, the day is yours to plan. What would you like to do?”

"I don’t know,” Jason admitted, glancing between Bruce and Alfred. “I…hadn’t really thought about it.”

"It’s alright, Jay,” Bruce reassured him. “You don’t have to have a detailed hour to hour plan. Just think about what _you_ want.”


End file.
